Parenthood comes with a monstrous amount of added concerns to keep your child safe, and the home is one of the most important to get right. Here are a handful of steps to ensure your house is fit for a child to grow in a cosy, safe environment.
Stairs and steps
Gravity is still new to children, so when it comes to a single step, their whole world can change. For a set of stairs, ensure you have installed child gates at the top and bottom of staircases. If they’re old enough to make their own way, ensure whenever possible to keep stairs clear of clutter – from toys to clothes, any obtrusion can cause an accident.
Tables, chairs and corners
Stubbing one’s knee against a table is one thing, but a bump on the head is worse. You won’t need to replace all your furniture with cornerless tables and chairs. Getting child safety foam corner protectors with an adhesive can make the corners of the family room safer.
TVs and top-heavy furniture
Climbing is another skill growing kids like to test out in a house, so it’s best to be prepared for your little adventurer to use nearby furniture as leverage to lift themselves up. Having your television and stand secured to the wall – and anything else that might be vulnerable to tipping over with enough force – will ensure no harm will come from your TV.
Kitchen cupboards, drawers and doors
If the Tide pod craze from the US is any indication, children are still attracted to all sorts of coloured liquids. Keeping your cupboard doors properly locked with cabinet latches or spring latches are a great way to make cupboard doors difficult for your exploratory kid voyagers. Don’t forget to also keep any household products and medicine in places that are impossible for your child to reach. Opening and closing doors can be a hoot for kids too, so investing in some safety door stoppers is a quick way of saving those fingers from getting squished.
Electrical outlets
If you find those child safety plugs incredibly hard to take off, that’s a good sign that your kid will have even more trouble with it. Alternative ways to protect your children from the sockets is installing a plastic outlet cover. Cords in general can also be fun for kids, and not so fun for adults. Consider taping cords to walls and floors with gaffer’s tape or with plastic cord covers – for when teething mouths want to gnaw on something.
Garage doors
Parking the car is a relief after a long day out with the kids, but once your children have been unclipped from their seats and are out the door, the last thing you want to worry about is the closing garage door behind you. One investment to consider is a garage door with technology to ensure their or your fingers aren’t going to get stuck. Gyphon’s sectional doors have pinch-resistant technology to protect the family from fingers getting squished when the door is closing.
Do you want to find out more about our finger safe technology? We have teams based in Perth and Melbourne who can answer all your questions.